Posted by Heather Merritt on 8/17/11 12:37pm
Msg #393942

Notary Fees

I'm not sure how much to charge for notarizing documents. Are there any limits on what you can charge? What is the standard fee for TN that most notaries charge? I am also interested in becoming a Signing Agent? What do I need to do to become one?

Reply by Frank/NC on 8/17/11 12:39pm
Msg #393943

Unbelievable!

Reply by Heather Merritt on 8/17/11 12:44pm
Msg #393944

I don't know what is so unbelievable. I am new to this and I am having a hard time getting clear answers from the state on it. I thought this was a place to get help from other notaries. Thanks for your help.

Reply by Les_CO on 8/17/11 12:49pm
Msg #393945


The fees allowed a notary, set out in T.C.A. § 8-21-1201,
are as follows:
1. For the recording in a well-bound book, to be
kept by the notary for that purpose, each attestation,
protestation, and other instrument of publication
(see also 8-16-118). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1.00
2. For the protestation of negotiable instruments,
for each instrument protested, without regard to
the number of parties on each instrument
(see also 8-16-119). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1.50
3. For every acknowledgment or probate of deed,
or other instrument of writing, with seal attached,
the same as county clerks.
4. For acknowledgment of notes for advances
on tobacco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ .25
5. For each deposition taken. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1.00
6. For any service legally performed by notary, the
same fees allowed other officers for like services.

Reply by Les_CO on 8/17/11 12:57pm
Msg #393948

To be a: notary signing agent:
You need a notary commission, a telephone, a computer, an internet connection, a laser printer, reliable transportation. And a thorough knowledge to all the documents in a standard real property closing/loan package and what they mean. JMO

Reply by Notarysigner on 8/17/11 1:16pm
Msg #393953

Ditto ...and more. Listening, being mentored and n/m

Reply by Notarysigner on 8/17/11 12:53pm
Msg #393947

I think if you have been reading this forum for the last seven days, looking for your requested information you might have gotten your answer. It comes up about ever other day and I personally think Frank may have been referring to that phenomenon.
Be patience and someone from TN will answer your question and you can go from there.

Reply by Philip Johnson on 8/17/11 12:53pm
Msg #393946

Heather, I believe you'll find an answer 3 messages down

along with if you'll search for newby advice on this site, you'll find a tremendous amount of info.

Reply by Alz on 8/17/11 1:18pm
Msg #393955

Everyone has given you great information and I would like

to add to it, if I may.

It is imperative that you decide why you want to be in this business? What are your goals and objectives? Develop a business plan and a plan of action. No one can do this for you.

There is a wealth of information and resources available from this forum; however, do not expect to anyone to spoon feed you, so to speak. You must put in the time and effort.

And by all means use the Orange Search button. It is your friend.

Good luck.

Reply by NJDiva on 8/17/11 1:49pm
Msg #393959

Hi Heather...Welcome to our nationwide forum of notaries.

This is a great site to learn all there is to know about this business. However, this is not a site where we hold hands and walk someone through starting and establishing a business. You can LEARN that here, but you have to do the footwork.

A few things to consider in particular, I'm not sure what area you are in, but in my area the market is saturated with notaries and signing agents. It is not a get rich quick business. It takes time, dedication and serious marketing to even get established. There are thousands of established agents already, so the main companies that will hire you initially may very well be lowball, nonpaying Signing Services. You have to beware. There are some serious scam artists out there. You do the work, they keep the money. If you're diligent about checking companies on here, you can many times avoid that, but you need to know it happens more than any of us would like.

Also, the market is very volatile right now. Business is bad for the established notaries, someone starting out should not start in this business with an expectation of being to sustain a household, IN MY OPINION. Hopefully it will start picking up, but it's really unpredictable at this point.

I wish you much luck and encourage you to just consider some of the things I've noted. Do a search on "Find a Notary". Put in your zip code and see how many notaries come up. That will give you an idea on how the market is in your area. After all, they ARE your "competition." (I don't care what ANYONE says...lol)

Reply by gowithn/TN on 8/17/11 3:54pm
Msg #393982

Well said NJDiva! n/m

Reply by Stephanie Santiago on 8/17/11 2:10pm
Msg #393961

Heather - each state is different as far as Notary Law

and what charges are allowable.
In California, there is a Secretary of State website with a link to the State Hanbook with all the information.
What state are you in?
...to begin with...

Reply by Les_CO on 8/17/11 2:22pm
Msg #393963

Re: Heather - each state is different as far as Notary Law

She asked about TN. I posted the fees allowed out of the TN handbook.

Reply by gowithn/TN on 8/17/11 3:36pm
Msg #393981

Re: Heather - each state is different as far as Notary Law

Heather maybe you should read your TN handbook. That is what I did when I started out and I am also in TN.

Reply by Les_CO on 8/17/11 4:39pm
Msg #393989

Re: Heather - each state is different as far as Notary Law

Claudia, I don’t think Heather’s going to be any “competition” for you worry about for many years !

Reply by NJDiva on 8/17/11 4:49pm
Msg #393993

Tee Hee! AMEN! Hi Claudia! xo

"Claudia, I don’t think Heather’s going to be any “competition” for you worry about for many years !"

Takes about that long to get established...lol

Reply by Les_CO on 8/17/11 5:03pm
Msg #393997

Re: Tee Hee! AMEN! Hi Claudia! xo

I’m not trying to confuse anyone, but I hear from very reliable sources that Claudia is one of the best (NSA’s) out there. JOO (just other opinions)

Reply by Stephanie Santiago on 8/17/11 3:14pm
Msg #393975

Re: Notary Fees...I see that now.... n/m

Reply by Buddy Young on 8/17/11 4:35pm
Msg #393988

Heather,
To become a notary signing agent you need to be familiar with the key loan documents.Then sign up with signing agencys, there are 100s of them listed here on Not Rot.
Key documents are:
Hud-1,note, deed of trust, right to cancel, truth in lending statement. There are others, but some Notarys do the key docs first to give the borower the opportunity to review the pertinent financial information and terms before he takes the time to sign all of the loan documents. The Notary Signing Agent and Borrower do not want to spend a lot of time with the document signing only to find out, late in the process that the key terms of the loan are incorrect and the borrower will not complete the signing.
You can also take a class to become a certified signing agent, that would introduce you to all the key documents in a loan package.

Reply by NJDiva on 8/17/11 4:51pm
Msg #393994

LOL...well I stand corrected!!!

I guess you WILL get hand holding...lol...don't stop now Buddy! You've only just begun...lol

Reply by Buddy Young on 8/17/11 5:01pm
Msg #393996

Re: Are you being sarcasitc, Diva? Just trying to help n/m

Reply by NJDiva on 8/17/11 5:13pm
Msg #393999

Just teasing my friend! No harm, no foul.

You're sweet! I know what a helpful chap you are! NP!

Reply by Buddy Young on 8/17/11 6:24pm
Msg #394004

Re: Thanks Diva, no problem. If you didn't care you

wouldn't bother to tease.

Reply by Les_CO on 8/17/11 8:31pm
Msg #394025

Re: Thanks Diva, no problem. If you didn't care you

Buddy I think what Cheryl was trying to say was that telling Heather the proper order in which to present the different docs to the signer is probably quite a goodly bit of time from now on Heathers projected learning curve. I don’t disagree with your post, but some of it is probably a little premature in this case. JMO

Reply by Buddy Young on 8/17/11 8:35pm
Msg #394027

Re: ok n/m

Reply by JanetK_CA on 8/17/11 9:44pm
Msg #394044

Well said, Les.

One of the things that can get people into the most trouble is when they don't know what they don't know (a very common condition... ) And sometimes a little bit of info is more dangerous than none at all - if they take that tidbit and then think they know everything they need and proceed to act upon that tiny bit of knowledge. No big deal if they only hurt themselves, but as most of us here know, there are lots of other parties involved in every signing with a great deal at stake!

Reply by NJDiva on 8/17/11 10:46pm
Msg #394064

Wow, it keeps being said better and better...

or weller and weller?

Seriously, that was a brilliant post Janet! Thanks!

And you're absolutely right, Les, you both hit the nail right on the head!

It's all relative.